7 minute read
SCHOOL NEWS
EXAM RESULTS
Yet again our students proved that Churcherians can reach dizzy heights inside and outside the classroom! The A Level results were, according to the Headmaster, the “best ever” with 25.8% A* and 61.4% A* or A. In his press statement, Simon Williams said, “This glorious success story is part natural talent, part brilliant teaching, but probably mostly the influence students have on each other. When everyone has a common aspiration to be the best they can be, the inspiration and influence infects all. Add to that the delightful camaraderie of a shared adventure and you have a heady mix that brings outstanding rewards.’
The GCSE results were not dissimilar with 71% of all the exams taken achieving grades 9-7 (an equivalent of the A* to A grades of past exams), a best for the last 8 years and over 98% of the grades being between 9 and 5 (an equivalent of A* to B grades), the highest achievement ever. Two students (pictured) gained a remarkable full house of 9s, a testament to all the hard work they put in over the years.
NEW BUILDING PROJECT
Affectionately known as the Goodfield Centre, after Churcher’s previous Headmaster, construction on the school’s most ambitious building project in its history began in July 2019. The new space will be a hugely exciting new addition to the school with 2,500m 2 across two storeys including:
a 250 seater auditorium orchestral rehearsal rooms 11 classrooms 15 music instrumental lesson/practice rooms Design and Technology workshops design studios
Not only will this provide additional classrooms and accommodation space, it will have positive knock-on effects for other areas of the school and landscaping.
As of March 2020, work has been progressing steadily on Phase 1, which will include
a new home for Design and Technology and is scheduled for an Autumn 2020 handover. Phase 2, which will create the new Music School, will commence in the Summer and be completed for final project handover 12 months later in July 2021.
LES MISÉRABLES
After the huge success of Miss Saigon in 2017, 2019 saw the senior production team take on the equally daunting challenge of Boublil and Schönberg’s best known musical, Les Misérables. With all the performers, musicians and technical team, the latter headed up by Chris Pellett (11), going above and beyond the usual school production, it was clear that the College had another hit on its hands. One member of the public that managed to get a ticket commented: “Why did I pay to see the show in London? This was better and on my doorstep!”
Several members of the cast, including Halcyon
Sheen, Rosie Botham, Harry
Fagge and Immi Evans, left Churcher’s in 2019 to pursue careers in the performing arts. We all wish them the very best of luck and look forward to seeing them on the West End stage.
To quote member of staff, John Lofthouse: “If there were a spare ticket, I would gladly go again….and again. I suspect that ‘Do you hear the people sing?’ will echo around the corridors of Churcher’s College for some considerable time to come.”
NATIONAL HOCKEY WINNERS
In March 2019 the U15 Boys Hockey team became national hockey champions after beating Whitgift School at the Independent Schools Hockey Cup National Finals in Birmingham. The whole match was livestreamed through the Churcher’s College Facebook page, enabling pupil (some who were supposed to be in lessons!) and parent-wide support throughout.
Churcher’s had to beat some tough opposition, including some familiar local rivals, to get to this point, including King Edward VI School, Seaford College, Kingston Grammar School, Uppingham School and St George’s College in the semi-final.
Head of Hockey Peter Beard said: “I’m so proud of the team becoming national hockey champions, it is an incredible
achievement. I know the team coaches, Jeremy Harris and Andy Cairns, were impressed with the players’ skill, hard work and resilience throughout the competition. I have no doubt that this is an experience the boys will cherish for years to come – huge congratulations from all at Churcher’s!”
TEAM CHURCHER’S PREVAILS
Over the 2019 Easter weekend, Churcher’s College students successfully completed the Devizes to Westminster (DW) International Canoe Race beating off stiff competition from schools across the UK to win the top school prize.
This is the second time Churcher’s has won the Junior Team School trophy (as well as twice for the Junior Ladies Team trophy) for this extraordinary challenge and follows months of arduous training and preparation. The DW Race is held every Easter over 125 miles (201 km) from Devizes in Wiltshire to Westminster in central London, including 77 portages along the way. This year there were 12 double kayaks from Churcher’s with 24 boys and girls competing in the Junior Doubles race class.
This year the tragic death of one of the adult competitors at Westminster underlined just how challenging this famously gruelling canoe event is, renowned worldwide for being a severe test of skill, physical and mental stamina and planning. Headmaster, Simon Williams, commented: “With 125 miles of endurance and compulsory overnight stops, DW pushes students to the limits of endurance and commitment. Participation and success in the race is in no small part thanks to the fantastic support team of teachers and parents who provide essential food, water and morale boosting as the crews run past at the portages! This is a huge success for all involved, but this year our thoughts are very much with the family of the competitor who tragically died.”
GRILL LECTURE
In May 2019, we welcomed 1982 Falklands War veteran Simon Weston CBE to the College to deliver the Grill Lecture.
Simon delivered an inspirational, funny and incredibly moving talk about his struggle to overcome his injuries and redefine his role in life to an audience of over 720 in the Sports Hall. His message was one of achievement, of triumph in the face of adversity, and of seizing the moment and succeeding. Before the lecture, Simon spent time with Churcher’s Sixth Form students discussing challenges, motivation and his unique life.
The annual Grill Lecture in May is one event in the Churcher’s College Academic Lecture Series, part of the Aspire Programme. Named after the school’s former Head of Religion and Philosophy, Judy Grill, the Grill Lecture sets out to expand thinking on differing values, belief, attitudes and points of view.
HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL DAY
In February, Churcher’s welcomed Mala Tribich MBE, to share the testimony of a holocaust survivor, a child at the time, almost 75 years after Bergen-Belsen concentration camp was liberated. Mala is now among the last people able to give a first-person account of what she and others suffered, and what was done to them.
“It’s hard to bear, even after all these years. All those bodies,” said Mala, eyes full of memories she can never erase. “I can actually see it. Like something out of hell.” The 500 people in the audience listened in silence to the blisteringly powerful talk which painted a haunting and vivid picture of life inside the camp. “Without hope, there is no survival.” Mala described the destruction wrought at the infamous concentration camp in northern Germany
A HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR’S STORY
BY Mala TribIch MBE
MONDAY 3
FEBRUARY2020 7.00 PM
In support of the Holocaust Educational Trust
where an estimated 52,000 people – most of them Jews – died during the last phase of the Second World War. Born in Poland and forced into a ghetto before being sent to Ravensbruck concentration camp, Mala was 14 when sent to Bergen-Belsen. Before the camp, some of her family members were rounded up by the Nazis, marched into a nearby forest and executed. She recalled finding her way to the children’s barracks and how Luba Tryszynska, ‘the angel of Belsen’, took care of them. She recalled that on the day British troops liberated the camp she saw people running. “All I could think was: how have they got the strength to run?”
